Chapter 87: The Sword Hilt

Lin Yang was extremely tempted by this item. It could be replaced by other materials, but its effects were excellent. Although one only needed to find an ancient tree to obtain a great deal of peachwood heart, true millennia-old wood was far too rare, found only in a handful of high-level secret realms. It was the sort of treasure one could only encounter by chance, never seek out. To obtain it today was practically Lin Yang’s good fortune.

“I never expected every fellow cultivator here to have something better than the last.”

“I’m afraid I may need to add a little more before I can match the value of your item, fellow Daoist.”

“I wonder if you might have any interest in my puppets. I still have a few of them.” Lin Yang took another puppet from his storage bag, identical to the one before. The other cultivator drew it close to sense it, then finally shook his head in dissatisfaction.

“I am alone in my sect, and besides, I am a body cultivator. I’m afraid I would have no use for this puppet.”

“In that case, what about this item, fellow Daoist?” After hearing that, Lin Yang put the puppet away and took out a talisman from his storage bag.

What a person truly wanted was always what he lacked, so Lin Yang had guessed correctly: this body cultivator was probably somewhat weak in soul power. Giving him a talisman that defended against soul attacks was exactly the right remedy.

“This talisman can last for a quarter of an hour, and its effect is to defend against soul attacks. It should suit you very well, fellow Daoist. I’ll add a bottle of pills as well and trade you for it. What do you think?” Lin Yang offered the item to the cultivator.

The cultivator took it, examined it carefully, and confirmed that it was genuine. “That will do perfectly. Fellow Daoist, you are very thoughtful indeed.” With that, he handed the wooden board over to Lin Yang.

Lin Yang also gave him the pills. By this point, the materials Lin Yang needed were almost all gathered; what remained were only minor odds and ends, things that could easily be found in a market.

“Then let us continue trading with pills,” Lin Yang said, and the exchanges went on.

The remaining items were all things of little consequence. Some were merely rare or precious, but at present Lin Yang had no use for them at all. For example, one item could restore a Core Formation cultivator’s yang energy.

That object was meant for cultivators who had depleted too much of their yang energy, usually from excessive indulgence in bed, leaving their vital essence too heavily drained. Lin Yang had absolutely no use for it. In the end, a Core Formation elder from the Joyous Union Sect forcibly traded for it. But Lin Yang did not mind that in the slightest. An item he did not need had been taken off his hands quickly and cleanly; that was simply a good person.

After Lin Yang had finished trading away his own things, the other fellow cultivators began taking out all of their treasures to exchange.

The first to step forward was Senior Sister Hong Fu. What she produced was a red pearl. It seemed to be the inner core of some kind of Core Formation beast, and such a thing was also exceedingly rare.

In this resource-poor world of cultivation, all spirit beasts were practically treasures; if one could avoid killing them, one usually did, and kept them for breeding instead. A Core Formation beast’s inner core was far too uncommon.

“What I hold in my hand is the inner core of the Poison Marsh Qilin, a Core Formation beast. I wonder which fellow Daoist is interested in exchanging for it?”

The so-called Poison Marsh Qilin was nothing more than a horse covered in scales, but because it had horns and unusually large hooves, it was called a qilin.

“I do have the intention to trade for it. I wonder whether this fellow Daoist would also be interested in an exchange?” It was the Core Formation cultivator from the Joyous Union Sect again. He took out a hairpin. It was brimming with spiritual energy, and its surface shimmered with radiant light, making it look both alluring and beautiful.

“This is a magical artifact left behind by an ancestor of our Joyous Union Sect. That senior later passed away in meditation, and the artifact was auctioned off by descendants before eventually ending up in my hands. I imagine this artifact is a third-grade magical tool. I wonder whether it can be exchanged for the inner core in your possession.”

He flicked the hairpin through the air. The air itself was split into rippling fissures. Even with such a casual motion, its piercing force was this strong. It truly deserved the name of a third-grade treasure. Lin Yang also greatly wanted it, but he could not bring himself to snatch it away.

“Could you let me take a closer look at this hairpin, fellow Daoist?” As a woman, the senior sister naturally liked ornaments. She made the decision at once and accepted the trade.

“Of course. Then I shall leave it with you, fellow Daoist.” The Core Formation cultivator from the Joyous Union Sect handed the hairpin, glittering with iridescent light, to the senior sister. She held it in her hand and smiled with delight. That faint, tender smile was so charming and bewitching that it made everything around her seem dim in comparison.

Yet in the eyes of the crowd, that breathtaking smile had no effect whatsoever. After all, they were people who had walked out from mountains of corpses and seas of blood. This much self-control they still possessed.

“In that case, this inner core is yours, fellow Daoist.” The senior sister tossed the inner core directly to the Core Formation cultivator from the Joyous Union Sect. When the crowd saw that the trade was complete, they once again began exchanging with one another.

These Core Formation cultivators did possess a fair number of good items, and the dazzling array of treasures opened Lin Yang’s eyes.

Just then, one Core Formation cultivator suddenly produced something unusual.

“Fellow Daoists, this is a peculiar sword hilt. It is extremely hard; I once struck it with all my strength, and it did not even leave a mark.”

“Beyond that, it has no other special qualities. I wonder whether any of you are interested.”

What he held up was a pitch-black sword hilt, made of wood, about four inches long. It seemed the original blade must have been long and slender.

But to the others, this thing was probably rather unsightly and of little value, almost entirely without merit. At most, it could be kept as a curiosity.

At that moment, the fragment of blade hidden against Lin Yang’s chest began to tremble violently, as though it might burst out through his clothes at any moment. In the end, Lin Yang forcibly suppressed it with spiritual energy, and silently promised himself that he would obtain that sword hilt by exchange.

Only then did the fragment quiet down. Lin Yang let out a long breath. It had nearly flown out on its own. If it had escaped before everyone’s eyes, it would surely have aroused suspicion again.

After all, no magical artifact with sentience was supposed to exist; that was an iron law among mortals. If something as lofty and intelligent as this fragment really appeared, not to mention that it was a demonic blade, it would likely stir up another storm of blood and slaughter.

Lin Yang stepped forward and approached the cultivator, asking, “May I ask what item you would like in exchange, fellow Daoist?”

Seeing that it was Lin Yang who had come up, the man was also very pleased. After all, this thing was completely useless to him, and if someone could use it to get a fine item from Lin Yang, then today’s trip would have been worthwhile.

“Do you still have the pills you refined?”

“Of course. However, I can only trade five pills for it. Any more than that, and I would be at a loss.”

“That is only fair. The fact that I can make this exchange already means I’m getting a bargain. I can’t blame you for not warning me. Aside from being somewhat hard, this thing truly has no other features.”

“Also, after the trade, you may not ask to return or exchange it again.” The cultivator reminded him.

“Of course. I am not the kind of fickle man who changes his mind again and again.”

Lin Yang handed him a bottle of pills and took the sword hilt in return.